May 24, 2011

Breaking Down the "Green With Envy" Trailer

Greetings, Muppet fans! Are you still riding the high from yesterday when we finally got to see the trailer for Green With Envy, this fall's sure-to-be blockbuster hit? (Let me know when you get tired of this schtick.) But seriously... if you haven't seen this video, you have absolutely no excuse not to watch it right now...

Okay, so you've seen it, and you now realize that this is indeed the very first teaser trailer for The Muppets, in theaters November 23rd. And this trailer may only be about 90 seconds long, but so much happens in these 90 seconds that we just had to stop and break it all down. I paused every shot of this looking out for Easter Eggs hidden in the backgrounds... and I think I found everything. But if I missed something, holler! (Unless you're Joe Hennes, then just sit quietly and don't rub it in.) Our friends over at ToughPigs have their own dissection of the trailer as well... so if you put our two articles together you'll surely get somethings special (or convoluted). Anyway, here's a nearly second-by-second break down of what to look for in the trailer!

0:09 - There is a car in Amy Adams' classroom... coincidence, or blatant reference to the car that Kermit, Fozzie, and the gang purchase from Milton Berle in The Muppet Movie?

0:14 - Behind Jason and Amy you can see the letter "T" from the classic logo for The Muppet Show.

0:40 - Jason Segel is very obviously standing in a doorway Backstage at The Muppet Theater. The famous green and tan woodwork is there in the background and so are the iconic columns. The architecture is undeniably the famous Backstage set.

0:43 - To the right of Segel's head are two magazine covers with Kermit on them. Based on a later shot (around 0:48) I think the read one is People. I can't tell what the white one is... but my guess is that it says Cosmopolitan.

0:44 - Behind Amy Adams' head is an enlarged, framed magazine with Kermit on the cover. It appears to be a copy of GQ (Gentleman's Quarterly). Could Segel and Adams be sitting in Kermit's house in some of these scenes?

1:06 - Gonzo is wearing a suit and tie--but not a chili-peppered suit and tie. His outfit, before he rips it open, is very uncharacteristic. Could this be Gonzo's return to insanity after helming a major plumbing company? Also... note Camilla's shirt. Who knew they made chicken clothes!

1:07 - In the top left corner you can clearly see the Hollywood Walk of Fame anniversary banner with a picture of none other than Jim Henson.

1:08 - Despite her radical outfit and short-cut hairdo, Miss Piggy is still wearing her famous ring on her left hand. Also, check behind Piggy's shoulder... that's a picture of her on her dresser thing. Plus... don't those donuts look good?

1:09 - Jason Segel and Walter are obviously in the middle of a musical number with members of their hometown, Smalltown, U.S.A. I would assume this is the song that carries them to the Greyhound bus that will take them to Hollywood.

1:09 - It's time for another round of spot the Muppets! From left to right... Droop (?!?), Marvin Suggs (?!?), Lew Zealand, Bobby Benson (?!?), Beaker, Dr. Honeydew, Scooter, Swedish Chef, Fozzie, Kermit, Miss Piggy, Sam Eagle, Beauregard, Link Hogthrob, Beautiful Day Monster (?!?), Dr. Julius Strangepork, plus Janice, Animal, Dr. Teeth, Zoot and, Floyd in the background. Some of these characters haven't been seen since The Muppet Show... some not in over 20 years. Also, note the classic Electric Mayhem stage set up with the Dr. Teeth logo and the stage pulled directly from The Muppet Show.

1:10 - Amy Adams is obviously performing on the famous Muppet Theater stage... which looks to have been rebuilt with amazing attention to detail, including the design on the walls that can barely be seen.

1:11 - Walter is wearing a Kermit t-shirt... and has an awesome expression.

1:12 - The gang is running from a building, that much is clear, but if you look closely you'll see that the name on the building, in giant letters, is "Gonzo's Royal Fl." We have to assume the rest says, "Gonzo's Royal Flush" which is... well, fantastic.

1:15 - Crazy Harry? Wearing a hard hat? The Work Safety people must have gotten to him too!

1:17-1:23 - Note that this is the same gang seen running from Gonzo's plumbing facility... My guess is that Gonzo blew it up for some reason (Who needs a reason? It's Gonzo!) and this is the aftermath. Which means... that Fozzie's budget comment, if in the final film, is complete fourth wall breakage--Muppet comedy gold!

Now, if you'll excuse me... I want to watch the trailer again, jump up and down some more, and prepare for Muppet Domination. (I wonder if that's anything like the Rapture... well, for us it probably will be.)

When Gonzo rips open his shirt, notice the blue arm sleeve going up into the puppet. Probably something that's going to be removed in post-production before the movie comes out (but if not, it goes on Muppet Wiki's Muppet Movie Goofs page! :-D)